Rants on Cycling and on Life:
Photos of people and bicycles that pass in front of my camera

6.27.2005

I am too angry to typemy mind is locked upblood boiling till steam is coming out of my ears!

okayserenity nowserenity now!SERENITY NOW!okay... I am better nowtake a listen to this short little audio clip

Anti-Bike Commentary on WAMU Radio in DC

The current edition of WAMU's weekly Metro Connection radio program endswith about a 3-minute "commentary" by former TV network correspondentMarvin Kalb, arguing that bicyclists belong on "bike paths", not roadssuch as MacArthur Blvd in Montgomery County, MD and Broad Branch Road inRock Creek Park (DC).

please give this a listenand then send your comments to the email address posted aboveanother rant from the mind of gwadzilla

here is how I responded to this sound bitesending now... so no response to post

Hello WAMU-

Earlier today a fellow cyclist shared with me an ANTI-BICYCLING piece that aired on WAMU.

Without hesitation I went to the link and downloaded the piece.

Needless to say I was steamed.

Two seconds into the Real Player sound bite I had to hit pause... I could not listen.

My blood started to boil.... my heart started to race at an unhealthy level.

The radio piece evoked the exact same feeling that overtook my body as I was nearly rear ended yesterday on my bicycle by someone who apparrently has the same ignorant perspective to bicycles, the road, and the law.

Once calmed down I then went back and listened to the full radio program in its entirety and then again several times throughout the day.

Each time I listened I managed to get just as aggravated as the time before.

So I write to you now....

If Marvin looked at the signs on Piney Branch he would see two things....

a sign that warns drivers that cyclists will be on the road

and

a sign saying that the Speed Limit is 25MPH

It boggles the mind that he has never seen either of these things before.

Had Marvin been going the speed limit there would not have been a PANIC situation.

Had Marvin anticipated what the signs had predicted.... then no one would have been at risk.

As far as MacArthur Blvd. goes....

that section of road has been a cyclist playground since I was a kid in the 70's.... out riding my bicycle with my fishing rod to Old Angler's Inn

If these people did not expect the cyclists then they were driving in unfamiliar territory.

Seeing cyclists on this stretch of road is to be expected.

As far as "a traffic jam" created by two cyclist riding side by side....

Cyclists do not create traffic... cyclists are traffic just like any car.

If a cyclist breaks the law... they are subject to a penalty just like a car driver.

People on bicycles are just that... people. People who are someone's father/mother/son/daughter/friend.... just like the people in the car.

It is vital that such journalism is avoided because if fuels an anti-cyclist fire. It dehumanizes the cyclist.

People in such a position should think before they speak.

this is an issue that is close to my heart

it is an issue that is difficult to discuss... my rights to my safety are so simple that I can not put them into words

I could go on and on and the go on some more on this topic, but I will refrain.

What this Radio Piece shows me is that we need some Public Service Annoncements to educate the car drivers of bicycle safety, bicyclist's rights, and the human element of the cyclist. Then on top of that people could also learn that bicycles are not creating traffic... they are eleviating traffic... I own a car... I choose to ride a bicycle

thanks for listening...

joel gwadz

husband

father of two

dog owner

and of course a cyclist

and here is the response from David Furst of Metro Connection

Joel, Thanks for the e-mail. As you would expect, we have received loads of complaints about this piece. I was on vacation for the last week and a half, so the first chance I had to listen to this piece was Sunday night. We'll be discussing the commentary at the station this week and I have already asked WABA (Washington Area Bicyclists Association) to write a rebuttal. We're running the response on Metro Connection this Friday.

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